KEY POINTS:
Developer Tony Gapes and opponents lock horns today over plans to build 146 apartments on the water's edge at Orakei.
Mr Gapes will start a two-week public hearing for resource consent before many of the 500-plus opponents give evidence against what local councillor Aaron Bhatnagar has called "East Germany by the sea".
The proposed development on the Orakei headland has caused much anguish on the northern slopes of Remuera, where wealthy residents are worried about loss of views, traffic problems on Orakei Rd and further damage to the geology and history of the Orakei Basin.
Mr Gapes, no stranger to controversy with a number of unpopular developments to his name, has responded to the furore by reducing the number of apartments on a 1.1ha site at 228 Orakei Rd from 202 to 146.
Residents were furious when the Auckland City Council allowed Mr Gapes to build 42 apartments on 246 Orakei Rd without giving the public a say.
The Orakei Residents' Society, with more than 300 members, has accused council planners of bending over backwards to help Mr Gapes cover the headland around the Orakei railway station with small apartments.
The area could eventually have about 400 apartments and there are rumours the council is lining up a deal for Mr Gapes to build more apartments on the site of "Pinot" function venue at 231 Orakei Rd. City planning manager Penny Pirrit said the council had had no talks with Mr Gapes about the council-owned Pinot site. The future of the site remains a closely guarded secret.
Building medium density developments around transport hubs of the type proposed by Mr Gapes is consistent with the council's urban growth strategy, even though Orakei is not marked as a priority area.
The strategy has faced strong public opposition, largely because of the quality of the housing waved through by council planners. At a protest meeting a year ago, John Banks, now Auckland mayor, criticised Mr Gapes as having some of the worst developments in Auckland to his name.
These include the bulky Scene One, Scene Two and Scene Three apartment blocks in downtown Auckland and the Eden One and Eden Two townhouse developments in Mt Eden. Mr Gapes walked away from any responsibility for illegal balconies at Mt Eden by putting his development company into liquidation.
The first few days of the hearing are set down for Mr Gapes, who will call a number of expert witnesses, addressing everything from traffic and parking to the effects on the scheduled Orakei Basin and the dominance of the five apartment blocks.
Michele Perwick, the consultant planner hired by the council to review Mr Gapes' latest plans, said the cumulative effects were "no more than minor" and has recommended the development be granted resource consent, subject to conditions.
